Halls in Blighty

December 2019 - January 2020

A 26-day adventure by Sarukoru Read more

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- Dec 21, 2019
- ☀️ 30 °C
- Altitude: 11 m
- Australia New South Wales Marrickville Tempe Alexandra Canal -33.936026, 151.17407433°56’10” S 151°10’27” E
Day 1
Kingsford Smith Airport
December 21, 2019 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C
Somehow we got to the end of the school and work year and made it to the airport full of excitement and anticipation. Summer in Australia had started with horrific bushfires and our flight was cancelled due to smoke and strong winds.

We headed home from the air-port with disappointed hearts. We didn't have to worry too long. A replacement flight was arranged and we were off the next day, still in plenty of time for Christmas with the family.Read more
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- Dec 23, 2019
- ☀️ 9 °C
- Altitude: 7 m
- England Richmond upon Thames East Sheen 51.464706, -0.27206251°27’53” N 0°16’19” W
Day 3
4 Connaught Avenue
December 23, 2019 in England ⋅ ☀️ 9 °C
We arrived at 4 Connaught Avenue before dawn break to the sounds of George and Percy pattering down the hall and whispering “they’re here”. It was a very exciting reunion - hugs and kisses all around and a quick tour of the house and sleeping arrangements.

But Christmas was coming and there was lots to do. Tegan and I headed out to Barnes for meat, fish and veg, while George, Russell and the kids got on the bus to Richmond for last minute gifts (and breakfast).

To stave off afternoon jet lag, we headed into the city in the afternoon to look around the shops and Leicester Square and soak up the pre-Christmas excitement.Read more
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- Dec 24, 2019
- ⛅ 10 °C
- Altitude: 7 m
- England Richmond upon Thames East Sheen 51.464706, -0.27206251°27’53” N 0°16’19” W
Day 4
Waitrose
December 24, 2019 in England ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C
Today was a day of shopping, cooking, wrapping and getting ready.

It was so lovely to be with the London gang for Christmas, even though we dearly missed Mum, Soph and Ross who sent us messages from home. Mum mainly wanted to know whether we had been to Waitrose yet - prompting the “Waitrose Selfie”.

We also ticked off another London tradition by going to the Bank of England pool for a swim before fancy Xmas Eve tea (roast chicken and Plumble.Read more
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- Dec 25, 2019
- ☀️ 7 °C
- Altitude: 24 m
- England Richmond upon Thames East Sheen 51.451941, -0.28197551°27’7” N 0°16’55” W
Day 5
Christmas Day
December 25, 2019 in England ⋅ ☀️ 7 °C
Christmas Day ! Everyone was up early to get stuck into all the presents under the tree.

It was a glorious sunny day so we went for a walk (and climb) in Richmond Park.

Then it was time to get stuck into the festivities. Negronis all round, and then Christmas lunch was a triumph - beef wellington, pudding and trifle.

Everyone fell into bed with new Xmas books and reading companions.Read more
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- Dec 26, 2019
- 🌧 8 °C
- Altitude: 15 m
- England Greater London Victoria Victoria Palace Theatre 51.496828, -0.14252751°29’49” N 0°8’33” W
Day 6
Hamilton !
December 26, 2019 in England ⋅ 🌧 8 °C
I received the most exciting Christmas gift ever - tickets to Hamilton for the whole family !

We had been listening to the soundtrack for the last 18 months, so I knew we would love it. But - the show itself exceeded all my expectations (which were high !!). This set up the sound track for the rest of the trip, with lots of singing and quoting of favourite lines..."Da da da dat da dat da da da da da ya da".

Before the show we took a tour of St Paul’s, climbing the dome and looking out over the city of London in the swirling wind. Tegan hooked us up for dinner in a great place called “Bone Daddies” - serving Japanese comfort food.

A fantastic day and night !Read more
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- Dec 27, 2019
- ⛅ 7 °C
- Altitude: 15 m
- England Richmond upon Thames Hampton Court Hampton Court Palace 51.403248, -0.33755151°24’12” N 0°20’15” W
Day 7
Ice-skating at Hampton Court
December 27, 2019 in England ⋅ ⛅ 7 °C
Today we all headed out to nearby Hampton Court Palace where an ice-skating rink was set up for the Christmas season.

After a few turns of the ice rink, we got tickets into the palace and grounds. Hampton Court Palace is where King Henry VIII set up court, and it is now a historical museum. There are real working kitchens with huge hunks of meat roasting, and pies cooking.

We wandered through the Great Hall, reading about Tudor dining etiquette: "Don't shift your buttocks left and right as if to let off some blast. Sit neatly and still".

Henry's Counsel Chamber is set up with projections of all the main players (Cromwell, Cardinal Wolsey etc) holding forth with advice and opinion.

There were also actors in costume roaming around acting out hilarious scenes about a group of players coming to court to entertain Queen Elizabeth. Lots of Shakespearean confusion, cross-dressing and audience participation.Read more
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- Dec 28, 2019
- ☀️ 11 °C
- Altitude: 38 m
- Italy Latium Rome Campitelli Ludus Magnus 41.889294, 12.49354741°53’21” N 12°29’37” E
Day 8
Rome - Hotel Ripa, Trastevere
December 28, 2019 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 11 °C
Today we left our comfy home away from home for our Italian mini-break.

Poor Ivy started the day being sick. We tried to be discrete with a plastic bag in the back of the taxi on the way to Gatwick. She felt so unwell while we were waiting at the airport, on the plane (thankfully only 2 hours), getting through immigration, and on the train to Rome and bus to Trastevere.

It was a huge relief to arrive at Hotel Ripa in Trastevere. It was so comfortable and welcoming and Ivy could finally curl up in the queen bed under a cosy duvet and get some sleep.

Henry, Russell and I then took turns going down for drinks and dinner at the hotel bar and restaurant downstairs. Henry was so enchanted by the free bread they kept bringing he couldn't make it through the main meal. This became a bit of a theme for the trip - with Henry and Ivy throwing themselves at the bread basket at every restaurant and trattoria we went to.Read more
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- Dec 29, 2019
- ☀️ 8 °C
- Altitude: 35 m
- Italy Latium Rome Campitelli Colosseum 41.890221, 12.49231741°53’25” N 12°29’32” E
Day 9
Colosseum and Roman Forum
December 29, 2019 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 8 °C
Luckily by morning, Ivy had made a full recovery and we were able to head out after breakfast for our tour of the Colosseum and Roman forum.

We stopped off on the way at the Trevi Fountain to throw some coins.

We met our guide Inger who took us on our tour of the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. It was a treat to have her taking us around and telling us historical stories. It was particularly awe inspiring to stand in the spectator area and imagine the Colosseum flooded to stage sea battles. They also brought in wild animals from around the world to battle it out for the entertainment of the people of Rome.

We finished by taking in the Pantheon as the sun set and then to "Ivo" in Trastevere (as recommended by Ash and Huxley) for pizza and pasta.

We also got serious with gelato for our first proper day in Italy. Some favourites emerged - frutti di bosca for Henry, mango for Ivy, and Russell and I went for the fior di lattes, dulce de leche, aran etc...Read more
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- Dec 30, 2019
- ☀️ 8 °C
- Altitude: 23 m
- Vatican City Vatican City Saint Peter's Square 41.902257, 12.45813141°54’8” N 12°27’29” E
Day 10
Vatican and the Sistine Chapel
December 30, 2019 in Vatican City ⋅ ☀️ 8 °C
Today started with coffee and Italian hot chocolate at our new favourite cafe "Giselda Forno" around the corner from Hotel Ripa.

From there we walked across the Tiber to Campo di Fiori and wandered the market looking for George's ragno undershirts. Failing in that task, we got some pizza slices for lunch and headed back across the river to Vatican City.

From there things started to unravel a little. I had failed to read the fine print on the skip the line tickets for the Vatican Museum that I had bought online. That meant we spent about 40 minutes in the wrong queue before we were told we had to go to a separate meeting point to collect our tickets. By that time we had missed the start time for our self guided tour. Apparently our only option was to hand over several more Euros and upgrade to the next guided tour in an hours time. That tour started with another 40 minute wait in the skip the line queue.

Anyway, I know I shouldn't grumble. Standing and looking up at the Sistine Chapel ceiling is certainly an experience of a lifetime. We ended by visiting Michelangelo's other masterpiece - the Pieta in San Pietro.

By the time we left the Vatican it was dark and after a few wrong turns our walk home became a bit long and scary. We opted for the comfort of Hotel Ripa again for drinks and dinner before getting an early night ahead of our trip to Florence in the morning.Read more
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- Dec 31, 2019, 12:00am
- 🌙 0 °C
- Altitude: 66 m
- Italy Tuscany Florence San Lorenzo District Piazza San Marco 43.776737, 11.25731143°46’36” N 11°15’26” E
Day 11
New Year’s Eve in Florence
December 31, 2019 in Italy ⋅ 🌙 0 °C
Today we took the train through the Italian countryside to Florence and made our way to the Hotel del Corso around the corner from the Duomo.

Our rooms turned out to be a two and a half level apartment with kitchen, laundry and bathroom in an old building next door to Dante’s house. Our hosts Chiara and Giulia were lovely and helped us get settled. Chiara booked us into a restaurant called Chiaroscuro for our New Year dinner.

After dinner we walked around Florence, enjoying the lights, the merry-go-round, and more gelato before tucking ourselves into bed by 9:30 pm.Read more
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